Cardiff University strikes called off – but doubts remain in the workforce

Martin Shipton

Members of the University and College Union at Cardiff University have confirmed that they will call off their programme of industrial action following the university’s commitment that it will impose no compulsory redundancies in 2025.

The university has been in turmoil since January 28, when a proposal was put forward to cut 400 jobs and close five of the university’s Schools, including Nursing and Music.

Members of the UCU voted overwhelmingly in favour of a series of strikes as well as a boycott of student assessments.

In mid-April the university modified its plan to close down the Nursing school, saying it would look favourably on a less draconian alternative.

Breach of contract

This week Nation.Cymru revealed that if the university went ahead with its original proposal to end nursing education by 2028, it would be in breach of its contract with NHS Wales to supply trained nurses until 2029. Under the terms of the contract, that could entail a £5m “fine” for the university.

Cardiff University maintains that it was aware of the break clause in the contract.

Despite the agreement to call off industrial action, members of UCU remain unhappy that more than 1,200 of them remain “in scope” for redundancy. They are concerned that the university could resurrect the prospect of compulsory redundancies in 2026 and press ahead without further consultation.

It is understood that the university has concerns that some of the academics who have applied for voluntary redundancy would withdraw their applications if they were taken out of scope for redundancy at this stage.

However, it is also understood that the university is keen to avoid industrial action, and will be prepared to take staff out of scope for redundancy at some stage in the coming weeks.

Mandate

The UCU’s mandate for industrial action is based on opposition to compulsory redundancies. A union source said it could seek to renew its mandate to include removing all its members from being in scope for redundancy.

A spokesperson for UCU’s Cardiff branch said: “At a packed members’ meeting, Cardiff UCU members held two votes, both of which were passed overwhelmingly.

“In the first, members voted in favour of accepting University management’s offer of no compulsory redundancies in 2025 in return for calling off the planned strikes and marking and assessment boycott, and agreeing to not instigate further industrial action under their current mandate.

“In the second, which was reflective of widespread mistrust in management and the challenges still faced by staff at University, members also voted to renew their current industrial action mandate (which expires in September 2025) so that they can continue to put pressure on management around other issues of concern in the future.

“Under the deal, Cardiff UCU members have won:

A guarantee of no compulsory redundancies in 2025 for all staff under the Academic Futures or wider transformation programme, including academics and professional services staff;

A guarantee that no staff will be served notice of compulsory redundancy in 2025; and

A commitment from the University to re-set relations with staff and work in a more collaborative way with campus Unions as it continues to consult on and enact widespread changes.

“Although UCU spokesperson described this as a “big victory”, the union warned that a number of key problems persisted:

“Over 1000 jobs still remain at risk at Cardiff University because management did not agree to take members out of scope for redundancy, despite promising no compulsory redundancies would happen this year. The union committed to continue to fight for jobs beyond 2025 and argue for staff to be taken out of at-risk status as soon as possible;

“While the University partially reversed plans to end nursing provision, numerous Schools are still slated for closure, so the branch has committed to continue to make the case for preserving these disciplines at the University;

“The last three months has had a large impact on staff mental and physical health. The union has done research with members that shows the extent of this and is keen to work with University management to address these issues going forward.

“The University is currently reviewing the structure of its professional services and student support provision which could impact seriously on academic and professional services UCU members.

“The branch will continue to make the case for scaling back current proposals for the University to generate large annual cash surpluses, and for drawing on available cash to fund a longer, less destructive, financial recovery.

“University management have been forced to the negotiating table this week by the huge staff, student, public, and political opposition to their massive cuts proposals. To avoid summer strikes and a marking and assessment boycott they offered a guarantee of no compulsory redundancies in relation to their restructuring plans for all staff in the 2025 calendar year. In doing so they fully met our key demand under the current mandate for action, and we welcome that.

“But our members are still deeply unhappy with the restructuring process, and the way it is being delivered. For that reason, we’ve also decided to seek to renew our industrial action mandate when the current one expires. Trust and confidence in the University Executive Board has been destroyed, and this will take time to rebuild. We truly welcome the new partnership-led approach the University has committed to, and we look forward to working much more closely together than we’ve been able to so far. We will be releasing a joint statement regarding the agreement in due course.

“Our members have won a big victory today, but the problems faced by staff at Cardiff University are far from over. The struggle continues.”

Relief

A Cardiff University spokesperson said: “The news that UCU has called off all its planned industrial action comes as a welcome relief, especially for those students whose studies would have been so severely impacted.

“We are very pleased that we have been able to arrive at this point, and we reconfirm our desire to work in partnership for the benefit of students, staff and our wider University community. We hope now to move forward with more positive and constructive talks with our campus trade unions on how we can work together to address our immediate financial challenges and secure the University’s long-term future.”